Change of Events
by Hope A
Summary: Fred takes a chance to get closer to Wesley and a relationship evolves.
1. Default Chapter

Change of Events  
  
Disclaimer: Joss Whedon and co. own all, I don't own anything except my imagination.  
  
Fred walked down the dark, empty halls of Wolfram and Hart as she looked through several lab reports she had received earlier that day. As she passed Wesley's office she paused. The door was open a crack and light was pouring into the hallway. She approached the slightly open door and raised her hand to knock, but stopped. She began to turn around, but then faced the door again. As she was about to knock the door swung upon and Wesley appeared bumping into her causing her to gasp in surprise and drop her folder, knocking her over in the process. Wesley first noticed the papers flying and then Fred as she began falling back. He rushed to catch her and succeeded. Fred instinctively grabbed hold of Wesley as he caught her, nuzzling her head into his neck. She smelled his sweet cologne and let out a breath of relief that he caught her. Wesley heard her shudder and helped her stand up.  
  
"Are you alright?" he asked softly, still close to her. Fred continued to cling to Wesley not wanting to let go. She finally answered.  
  
"Ye-yes" she stuttered. Wesley looked into her eyes causing Fred's knees to almost buckle beneath her. She finally stepped back and bent down to pick up her papers and Wesley bent down and helped her. As she reached for a lab, he reached at the same time, and her hand brushed against him, but she didn't pull back. Wesley continued to pick up the rest as Fred gave a small smile. Fred stood accepting the papers Wesley handed her. He smiled as she received them.  
  
"You're sure you are okay?" he asked again. Fred let out a small giggle. Wesley smiled at her laugh.  
  
"Yea, I was just startled is all" she said.  
  
"You were startled, I didn't expect you to be outside my office" he said smiling again. "By the way, why were you outside my office?" he asked.  
  
"Oh yea, um, I needed to run some numbers . . . uh, from . . . accounting with you, yea accounting and I didn't know if . . ." she trailed off. Wesley gave her a puzzled look and Fred sighed. "I just wanted to see if you were still here, because it's late, and I just wanted someone to talk to" she said, dropping her head. Wesley was a little surprised by her answer.  
  
"Oh, well, come in then" he said motioning to his office. Fred looked up and smiled at him. As she entered his office, he followed closely behind her closing the door. They spent the rest of the night just talking and laughing, catching up on each other's lives. Wesley drove Fred home late. As he pulled up to her apartment, she unbuckled her seatbelt and turned to him.  
  
"Well, thank you for talking with me, it was really nice. Sorry it's so late, but I definitely had a good time" she said. Wesley smiled at her.  
  
"You're welcome, and I had a good time too" he replied.  
  
"Well, good night" she said as she leaned over and kissed him. She quickly got out of the car and ran to her door.  
  
"Good night" Wesley said in shock from her kiss. He smiled, shifted gears and drove off.  
  
The next morning Wesley went to Fred's office to talk to her and initially ask her out. When he entered the labs, there were tons of people running around, talking and researching. He looked around the room for Fred but couldn't find her. He did spot Knox though and then Knox began to walk over to him.  
  
"Hello Mr. Wyndom-Pryce", he greeted.  
  
"Hello Knox, do you know where Fred is?" he asked.  
  
"Yea, she's um really busy in her office. Do you want me to tell her you stopped by?" he asked. Wesley knew Knox was trying to get rid of him.  
  
"No, I need to talk to her now" he said as he headed for her office. Knox stopped him.  
  
"She is really busy trust me, and she won't want to be disturbed" he persisted.  
  
"She'll want to see me" he said. Suddenly Fred came out of her office.  
  
"Wesley!" she called as she ran to him.  
  
"See, I told you" Wesley said walking passed Knox. Fred greeted Wesley with a hug and he embraced it.  
  
"I was just coming to see you" she said her arms still around his neck.  
  
"Know said you were too busy right now" he replied.  
  
"What? No, I wasn't busy" she said. "So what's up?" she asked as she stepped out of the hug.  
  
"Actually I came to see if you wanted to go out to lunch?" he asked.  
  
"Sure!" Fred replied quickly. Wesley grinned at her answer.  
  
"Great, I'll come back at noon" he said.  
  
"Actually, I wanted to go see Angel right now, and I need you to be there" she said.  
  
"Okay" he said as they began to leave. A Wesley passed Knox he whispered, "I guess she was just too busy for you".  
  
Fred plopped a folder on Angel's desk. Angel looked up to see Fred and Wesley standing in front of his desk.  
  
"What's this?" he asked.  
  
"These are the lab reports for the quarter" Fred replied. Angel looked through the folder, skimming over the pages it contained.  
  
"Is there a problem?" he asked.  
  
"Yes actually. I know that trying to re-corporealize Spike cost a lot of money and I went over my quarterly budget, but I got all the money back, but the numbers don't add up right. There is an error in the computer after I add the money, I saved, back in, it says it's not enough, but I got back exactly enough" she finished.  
  
"Maybe it's just a glitch in the computer" Angel suggested.  
  
"That's what I thought, but when I checked, the numbers were all right. I think the number it shows is a variable for the real amount" she said. Angel looked up at her like a deer in headlights.  
  
"Fred just means the computer isn't showing everything, it's confused" he explained.  
  
"Oh, well I'll have accounting look over it" he said.  
  
"Thanks Angel" she said. Wesley led Fred back to his office.  
  
"I want to ask you something" he said pulling her into his office. "I found this relic with symbols on it, that I've never seen before. I was thinking maybe they're mathematically symbols, can you check?" he asked as she sat down.  
  
"Sure" Fred answered looking at the stone. Her forehead crinkled as she concentrated, turning the block, several different ways. "Well, they look familiar but I think it has words mixed in to" she said looking up, "and . . ." she began as Wesley suddenly leaned down and kissed her. Fred tried to pull away at first and then leaned forward into it. She then stood up as the relic dropped making a thud on the carpet, but neither of them heard it. Wesley wrapped one arm around her to rest on the small of her back and the other between her shoulder blades. Fred brought her arms up to wrap around his neck, pulling herself closer to him. Wesley instinctively hugged her tighter as he raised one hand to caress her face. When they pulled apart Fred rested her head on his chest. Then she looked up and smiled. "Well, um, wow" she replied giggling a little.  
  
"Yea, that pretty much sums it up" he said. He brushed her hair off her shoulder as he stared into her eyes. He leaned down again as Fred closed her eyes and embraced him tightly again. Fred sighed with pleasure against his lips. Wesley smiled and then pulled away from her lips. Fred still held onto him because if she didn't, she would have collapsed from the kiss.  
  
"Well, we should probably get back to work" Fred whispered.  
  
"Yea, that might be a good idea" he said letting her go. Fred felt cold air fill the space between them and wanted his warmth back, but he turned and rounded his desk. Fred picked up the relic and began trying to decipher it again.  
  
Fred was happy the rest of the day, and she had a goofy smile on her face whenever she thought about Wesley and realized she was in love with him. Coming to this revelation excited her but scared her at the same time. She knew that Wesley and her fit together and that it was a perfect match, but for some reason never acted upon it. As Fred sat in her office staring off into space as she thought about Wesley, there was a sudden knock at the door. Fred gasped, jolting in her chair from the abrupt noise.  
  
"Come in" Fred called out as she stood. Wesley opened the door slightly and peeked his head in. He smiled at the sight of Fred and entered completely.  
  
"I came by to take you out to lunch and . . ." Wesley began as he closed the door and then turned to Fred, but was interrupted when Fred unexpectedly hugged him. Fred held him tightly and Wesley returned the embrace. Fred closed her eyes taking in his scent as she clung to him, as if she needed to hold him to stand up. She ended the hug after what seemed like an eternity. "What was that for?" Wesley asked stroking her cheek.  
  
"I just couldn't wait to see you is all" she replied.  
  
"Well, shall we?" he asked leading her to the door. Fred nodded and exited first.  
  
Later that day, as it was getting dark and people were leaving, Fred was still working in her office. She had taken a slightly long lunch hour and needed to catch up on some paper work. She still had to go see Wesley before he left to go home. When Fred looked back at her clock it was hours later even though it only felt like a few minutes.  
  
Wesley put his papers away as he checked the clock wondering where Fred was. He waited a little longer before he went to go check on her. A few minutes later he closed everything up, shut off the lights and locked the door as he exited his office. When he entered the lab, everything was dark. He figured she went home, but went to her office just in case. As he approached the door, he knocked lightly. "Fred?" he called. He didn't hear any response or any noise on the other side of the door so he opened it slowly. He looked in and saw Fred, head on the desk, asleep. He walked over to her and closed her folders and books on her desk. He put her things on the couch in her office and then gently picked her up and carried her out to his car. As he put her in the front seat, she mumbled something, but he didn't catch it. Then he rounded the car and sat in the driver's seat. He was debating on whether to bring her to her apartment or back to his. He didn't want to wake her because she looked so peaceful. He decided to bring her home with him, thinking she wouldn't be offended. Wesley's mind wondered as he drove, not really paying attention to road, but he just automatically drove home. He parked in front of his apartment building, got out and carried Fred in with him. She shifted a few times in his arms. When he entered his apartment he laid her down in his bed, slipped off her shoes and jacket as he pulled the covers over her. He kissed her forehead and went to the living room to sleep on the couch, hoping that when she woke up she wouldn't be mad. Fred woke in the middle of the night. She had a slight headache and turned to face her clock and check what time it was. She didn't remember driving home, thinking Wesley must have just brought her home. She turned to her dresser, but it wasn't there, and either was her clock. She turned onto her back and looked around and noticed it wasn't her bedroom. She sat up gasping as she began to panic. It was so dark, she couldn't tell where she was. She swung her legs over the edge of the bed and stood up to investigate. She walked out into the hall and recognized the apartment; she was at Wesley's. She was confused, thinking maybe she intentionally went home with him. 'Where is he though?' she thought. 'Did we . . .? No he wouldn't do that'. She walked into the living room and searched for him.  
  
"Wesley" she whispered. She was afraid to move too much because she couldn't see anything and her luck she'd break something. "Wesley" she called out a little more loudly as she took another step.  
  
Wesley heard his name being called softly, still in semi-dream state, figuring it was just his imagination. Then he heard it again, more loudly than the first time. He recognized the voice. Wesley blinked his eyes open and as they adjusted to the dark, he sat up. Fred gasped as she saw a shadowy figure move in the apartment.  
  
"Wesley? Is that you?" she asked. Wesley rubbed his eyes and turned behind him trying to see her.  
  
"Yes" he responded. Fred tip toed towards him, hands in front of her, trying not to knock anything over. Then she banged into a side table, and Wesley flicked on the light. Wesley stood up and began to round the couch to meet her. Fred winced at the sudden brightness and stepped back losing her balance. Wesley hurried over to her and caught her helping her keep her balance. Fred giggled at her own clumsiness and Wesley joined in her laughter as well. "Are you okay?" he asked through his chuckle.  
  
"Yes, I'm fine" she said regaining composure. "But I was wondering, why am I at your apartment?" she asked. Wesley stopped smiling and looked down at his feet.  
  
"Well, you fell asleep at your desk so I brought you here so you could sleep" he said.  
  
"Oh, okay" she said beaming him a bright smile. He smiled in return.  
  
"Is everything alright? Why did you wake up?" he asked hoping she wasn't hurt.  
  
"Oh, I have a headache" she replied. He nodded heading to the kitchen. He pulled out a glass and a bottle of Aspirin. He walked back to her handing her the pills and a glass of water. Fred took the tablets and then handed him the glass. "We only have a few more hours until work, I should probably get some more sleep" she suggested as she yawned. Wesley grinned and nodded. "I was wondering if you wanted to join me in the bed?" she asked. Wesley looked wide-eyed at her. "Well, it's just that the couch isn't that comfortable and the bed is so big, there's enough room for both of us" she said bashfully.  
  
"As long as you don't mind" Wesley said.  
  
"Mind, it's your bed" she replied.  
  
"Yes, true" he said following her into the bedroom.  
  
Fred crawled into the bed pulling the covers up as Wesley cuddled next to her. Fred faced him and kissed him good night. Wesley raise his hand to her face and pulled her body closer to him. Fred felt the warmth radiating off his body and she felt safe. Wesley then wrapped his arms around her waist as Fred moved her hands to his chest. She deepened the kiss as Wesley held her tightly pulling her even closer to him. Fred's body reflexively molded to his and she felt a chill run up her spine and settle in her stomach. Wesley felt her shift and rolled on top of her, resting one hand on her hip and the other in her hair. Fred's arms moved over his back. Wesley lowered his head to her neck, nuzzling and kissing her. Fred's head flung back, her hair spreading over his pillows. She wasn't planning on doing this but she couldn't stop. Her mind was screaming at her to push him away and get some sleep; she wasn't ready, but her body kept wanting more. Wesley sensed her tense up, even though she didn't say anything and he lifted himself up looking into her eyes. They were closed at the moment but flashed open when she felt him stop. He searched her eyes for fear and hesitation but didn't see any. "Are you sure you want to do this?" he asked. Fred just nodded and smiled. Wesley leaned back down to kiss her again. Fred closed her eyes and moved her hands to the rim of his shirt and pulled it off over his head. She tossed it aside and her cold hands came in contact with his skin. Wesley moaned low in his throat as she rubbed his back. He straddled her legs and unbuttoned her shirt throwing it to the side of the bed. Then he leaned forward again to kiss her neck as Fred's hands roamed his chest, down his stomach to his pants. She undid the button and unzipped them with unsteady hands. Then he moved a hand down to hold hers and reassured her. He lifted her hand and kissed it. Fred raised her head and kissed him again as she pushed his pants off and flipped them over so she was on the top. He wriggled out of them and kicked them aside. Fred then straddled his hips as his hands slid over her waist and back. Wesley pulled her close to him and rolled them over again. He unbuttoned her jeans and pulled them off her. He stared at her body lavishing in how perfect she looked. Fred couldn't stand him watching her so she dragged him down for another kiss.  
  
The next morning Fred woke to an alarm buzzing. She hit the alarm , making it stop. Hoping it wasn't a dream she turned her head to the side. Seeing Wesley asleep, she smiled and stroked his cheek. His hand resting on her stomach shifted and he pushed closer to her.  
  
"Fred" he whispered as he began to wake up. His flickered open and he smiled when he saw Fred. He sat up and kissed her cheek, glad it wasn't a dream too. Fred grinned and sat up pulling the covers over her not so clothed body. Wesley chuckled at her.  
  
"We should probably get ready" Fred said pulling on her shirt and underwear as she scurried into the bathroom. Wesley watched her go into the bathroom and laid down on his back sighing as he looked up at the ceiling. He heard the shower start and decided he should probably get his clothes out for the day. He realized Fred had no clean clothes at his place and they would need to stop by her apartment before work.  
  
"Fred" he called as he knocked on the bathroom door.  
  
"Yea" she said as she opened the door a crack.  
  
"Do you want me to go to your place now and get clothes or after you shower" he asked.  
  
"Go now, by the time you get back I'll be done" she said smiling, so glad Wesley was such a good guy.  
  
"Okay, I'll be right back" he said kissing her good bye.  
  
"Bye" Fred said as he turned to leave. "Oh, get a skirt and a button down blouse, please. And be careful" she said.  
  
"Okay" he chuckled as he pulled on his pants and grabbed his keys. Fred took a pretty long shower enjoying the water relaxing her muscles. When she stepped out she heard Wesley coming in.  
  
"Wes!" she called, making sure it was him. Wesley walked into the bedroom with Fred's clothes. "Oh, you got my favorite outfit" she said as he handed it to her. "Thank you" she said kissing him.  
  
"Your welcome. Oh I better get ready, be out in a second" he said as he jumped into the shower. Fred decided to make some coffee and breakfast for him after she got dressed. They ate quickly and rushed over to the office. They forgot they had a meeting first thing in the morning. They got there just in time. As Gunn began speaking about the law department, Angel could smell Fred and Wesley all over each other. He thought they made a good couple. But working together and sleeping together was going to get tricky. He ignored it as the meeting continued and deciding to discuss it with them later. Wesley could sense that Angel knew what was up and that he'd have a comment on it with him later. He didn't want Fred to worry about what Angel thought, so he wasn't going to tell her. After the meeting when everyone was leaving Angel pulled Wesley and Fred aside.  
  
"What is it Angel?" Fred asked with concern.  
  
"Nothing, Angel just has to talk to me" Wesley butted in. I'll meet you in my office in a few minutes" he said smiling at her. Fred looked to Angel and then left.  
  
"Actually I wanted to speak to both of you" Angel said to Wesley.  
  
"I know what this is about and I don't want you to scare Fred" Wesley explained.  
  
"I just want you two to be careful. Your relationship is going to get complicated if you guys date and work together" Angel warned him.  
  
"Don't worry Angel, she won't get hurt" he said. Angel nodded as Wesley headed to his office. Wesley knew Angel just wanted her not to get hurt and he glad he was concerned but at the same time, it was none of his business what they did. He dismissed his thoughts and got back to work.  
  
To Be Continued. 


	2. Difficult Decisions

Change of Events Chapter: 2  
  
A few weeks past and Fred and Wesley's relationship was going well. Wesley seemed happier, as did Fred, and everyone could see it was truly meant to be. People in the office knew what was going on, mostly the people Fred and Wesley worked closely with. Wesley was still upset with what Angel said mostly because he was wrong and he had doubted Wesley. Angel didn't say much to them and treated them the same as before they were dating. Angel knew office romances don't always go over well, and something could happen to change everything. All Wesley knew was that he was happy and that was because of Fred.  
  
Fred sat in her office working on the most recent lab reports when she heard a knock at her door. "Come in" she said looking up.  
  
"Hey" Wesley greeted. Fred smiled back her gorgeous smile and stood walking over to him. Fred kissed him softly and stepped back.  
  
"What's up?" she asked.  
  
"We have a staff meeting in an hour, Angel just told me" he explained.  
  
"Oh, no. Only an hour? I still have to finish this paper work" she said half turning as she pointed to her desk.  
  
"Don't worry about it. Get as much as you can done and tell Angel you'll get it to him as soon as you can" Wesley suggested.  
  
"Okay, then let me get back to my work" she said kissing him again before he exited.  
  
About 45 minutes later she heard another knock on her door.  
  
"Crap" she whispered as she hurried to finish. "I'm not done yet Wes" Fred said as the door opened revealing Knox. "Oh, Knox, I thought you were . . ." she trailed off.  
  
"I know" he said closing the door and walking towards her desk.  
  
"I have a meeting in fifteen minutes and I have to finish this report. This really isn't a good time" she explained.  
  
"Oh, do you need my help?" he asked. Fred didn't work as closely with Knox anymore since she began dating Wesley.  
  
"No, I can handle it" she said rounding her desk, trying to usher him out.  
  
"Are your sure?" he asked. Now she was getting annoyed.  
  
"Yes, I'm positive" she said putting her hand on his chest pushing him out. He grabbed her wrist. Fred looked at her wrist and then up at him and he pulled her closer to him. "What are you doing?" she asked nervously.  
  
"Come on, don't tell me you never thought about it" he said leaning down for a kiss. Fred let him kiss her but when he didn't pull away she tried to push him off. Finally succeeding and wiping her mouth.  
  
"No, Knox, I'm with Wesley. This is wrong" she said.  
  
"Yea, but you want it" he said walking towards her again.  
  
"No, I don't, I love Wesley" she said backing up like a scared animal.  
  
"You can't fight it Fred" he replied forcing her against the wall. Fred looked around the room, trying to find a way to move away from him. Before she could even think, he was pressed up against her.  
  
"Stop, Knox, please" Fred begged. He grabbed her wrists disabling her from pushing him away. He kissed her forcibly almost violently which scared Fred. She tried to break away from his hands. He just laughed at her struggling. A tear rolled down Fred's face as she tried to hit him. Then he removed one of his hands and slapped her. She almost fell to the ground but he pulled her back up. He stroked her hair and she flinched from his touch. Then he reached one arm around her waist, freeing one of her hands. She punched him hard in the face and ran for the door.  
  
Wesley checked his clock noticing he had five minutes until the meeting began. He gathered his research and headed off for Fred's office. As he exited his office he bumped into Gunn.  
  
"Oh, sorry Wes" Gunn said. "Where are you going, we have a meeting?" he said pointing to Angel's office.  
  
"I know, I'm just going to get Fred" he explained.  
  
"Oh, okay, I'll tell him you guys will be here in a minute" Gunn replied.  
  
"Thanks" Wesley said proceeding on his way to her office.  
  
Fred reached the door as Knox grabbed her from behind. "Come on Fred, I just want to have a little fun" he said turning her around in his arms grasping her shoulders.  
  
"Stop, please" she pleaded, now with several tears stains etched on her face.  
  
"I can't do that Fred. See, you made me believe you liked me so now I want what I deserve" he said.  
  
"You're not going to get it from me" she replied, wriggling against him trying to get free.  
  
"Hmm . . .I like the way you wriggle" he said grinning. Fred spit in his face, causing him to shut his eyes, but keep his grip on her. When he looked up he threw her against the wall across the room again.  
  
Wesley entered the labs spotting certain people Fred introduced him to. He nodded to a young lab technician and waved him over.  
  
"Hey Brad" Wesley greeted.  
  
"Hello, Mr. Wyndham Pryce" he replied.  
  
"Is Fred in her office?" Wesley asked.  
  
"Yes, she's been in there all day I think" he answered.  
  
"Great thank you" Wesley said as he continued on his way to Fred's office.  
  
Knox pushed himself against her again, nuzzling and kissing her neck. Fred just stood there crying. "Please, stop, please" she whispered, praying even though she knew her efforts were fruitless.  
  
As Wesley approached her door, he heard movement on the other side of the door. He didn't think anything of it and knocked.  
  
Knox whipped his head to look at the door when he heard a knock.  
  
"Fred?" Wesley called.  
  
"Help me, Wesley hel-" she began but Knox smothered her cry with his hand.  
  
Wesley barely heard her plead but knew something was wrong. He reached for the door knob.  
  
Knox looked back to Fred, his hand still against her mouth. She knew she had to get to Wesley. She licked his hand and he jerked his hand away as she pushed him off with all her strength. Wesley entered the office to see Fred running towards him and throwing her arms around him. He embraced her, dropping his papers and then noticed Knox.  
  
"I'm sorry, I tired to yell, but I couldn't. I tried , I . . ." Fred trialed off through sobs.  
  
"Shh, you're okay now" he said. He escorted her out of the office. "Go, to my office and wait for me there" he said. She shook her head. "Yes, you'll be okay, I will be right there" he said. Fred looked at him, then to Knox and then exited the office. Wesley glared at Knox walking towards him. He punched him to the ground. "If you ever lay a finger on her again I will kill you" he yelled angrily.  
  
"That's going to look. The good guy killing a human" Knox said wiping blood from his lip.  
  
"You're not even human anymore" Wesley said as he began to leave. "Oh, and you're fired" he said.  
  
"You can't do that, only Fred or Angel can fire me" he said standing.  
  
"Well, I'm speaking on behalf of Fred, and I'm sure she doesn't mind me firing you" he said as he left. Wesley rushed back to his office. When he entered he didn't see Fred, but he could hear her. He followed her cries to his desk. She was huddled under his desk, knees pulled to her chest and head down, rocking slightly. He knelt next to her and laid his hand on her shoulder. "Fred" he called softly. She lifted her head to look at him with tear filled eyes.  
  
"Oh, Wesley" she said hugging him again. "I thought that I could trust him. I thought I didn't have to worry about this sort of thing here" she said.  
  
"It's okay, it's over, and I fired him" he replied. Fred looked at him.  
  
"You what? Can you do that?" she asked.  
  
"I don't know but I just did" he said. "Come on" he said helping her stand up. Suddenly Harmony appeared at the door.  
  
"Um, knock, knock" she said.  
  
"Yes, what is it Harmony?" Wesley asked.  
  
"Uh, the boss wants to see you, Wesley" she said. Wesley nodded.  
  
"You sit here and I'm going to talk to Angel" he said. Then he turned to Harmony. "Can you tell Lorne to come in here and sit with Fred" he asked. Harmony nodded as she left the office. "We did miss some of the meeting, so I have to talk to him" Wesley said.  
  
"I don't think he wants to see you about the meeting" she replied looking down.  
  
"I know" he said as Lorne came in. "Hi Lorne" Wesley greeted.  
  
"Hey, what's going on?" he asked concerned. Wesley pulled him aside and explained everything.  
  
"So, will you just sit with her until I come back?" he asked. Lorne looked over at Fred.  
  
"Of course" he replied walking over to a still frightened Fred. Wesley kissed Fred on the top of her head and left. "So, how are you doing?" Lorne asked. Fred looked up at him.  
  
"I don't want to talk about it" she said looking down again. Lorne nodded and sat in silence with her.  
  
Wesley knocked on Angel's door.  
  
"Come in" Angel said. Wesley entered a bit scared. Angel just looked at him for a few seconds. "What the hell did you think you were doing?" Angel asked. Wesley didn't know how to answer. "You fired someone without consulting me" he yelled as he stood up.  
  
"He needed to be fired" Wesley said.  
  
"That's not your call. You're not in charge of Fred's staff" he said. "Just because you're dating her doesn't give you the right to intervene with her employees" Angel explained. "And I found out you hit him?" Angel yelled.  
  
"He attacked Fred!" Wesley yelled back.  
  
"It's not your business" Angel replied.  
  
"Yes it is my business. He hit the woman I love, I made it my business" Wesley explained.  
  
"Wes, I told you things would get complicated and now they have" Angel said.  
  
"Yes, but I fixed it, I fired him" Wesley replied.  
  
"You can't do that Wes. And it doesn't fix it" he said.  
  
"I am not breaking up with the woman I love because some jerk decided to hit on her" Wesley said defensively.  
  
"Fine, then you have to pick. It's your job or Fred" Angel answered.  
  
Wesley just looked at him in shock.  
  
"You can't do that" Wesley said.  
  
"I just did" he replied.  
  
"My personal life is none of your business" Wesley said.  
  
"It is when you punch and then fire one of my employees" Angel replied.  
  
"You, it's always about you Angel. As long as everything is alright with you then everything must be fine" Wesley said. "Fred is still scared and I know she doesn't want to have to work with Knox every again. If I quit, she will too" he explained. "Then you'll lose two more employees. So you take your pick. Either fire Knox for good, or lose me and Fred" Wesley ordered as he left Angel's office. Angel just watched him leave and then sat back down at his desk. He pounded his fist in his desk causing a loud thud noise. Harmony then entered his office.  
  
"Is everything okay boss?" she asked. Angel didn't even look up.  
  
"Not, now Harmony" Angel replied. Harmony quickly left his office and got back to work.  
  
Wesley entered his office nodding to Lorne allowing him to leave. Before he exited Wesley stopped him.  
  
"Thank you Lorne" he said. Lorne smiled and looked back at Fred.  
  
"She didn't say much, but I can sense she's shaken up. Make sure you take care of her" he said. Wesley nodded then Lorne left.  
  
Wesley leaned against his now closed door and just stared at Fred. Even though she looked fine physically, he saw something wrong in her eyes. After a few minutes of silence Fred turned her head to look at Wesley. He gazed into her eyes and saw fear and pain. His eyes saddened by her expression and he slowly approached her. He knelt next to the chair she was sitting in and cupped her cheek with his hand. She closed her eyes and leaned into his hand. Fred felt so safe and carefree with Wesley. He had a way of making her forget everything around them. When she finally opened her eyes he was smiling at her and stroking her hair. He leaned in and kissed her cheek. Then he stood up directing her to do the same thing. She held his hand as she stood and rounded the chair. Then Wesley suddenly hugged her, wrapping his arms around her in a comforting and protecting way. Even though neither of them spoke, Fred knew he was saying sorry for what happened and that if he could have stopped him he would have. Fred felt like crying but smiled instead. She knew she would get over this and Wesley would help her. She was so glad she had a man like Wesley to love and care for her. After what seemed like an eternity, they stepped apart. Wesley jerked his head towards the door, indicating to leave. Fred smiled and nodded in agreement. Wesley turned and wrapped and arm around her waist as Fred did the same to Wesley. As they left Wesley flicked off the lights and closed the door.  
  
To be continued. 


End file.
